The Photographers’ Gallery will unveil its new home for international and British photography in the heart of London's Soho on Saturday 19 May 2012. The Gallery’s opening will mark the conclusion of its ambitious £8.9 million capital campaign, which has been generously supported by Arts Council England’s Lottery Fund alongside a range of Trusts, Foundations, corporates and individuals.
Designed by award-winning Irish architects O’Donnell + Tuomey, the transformed building features a two storey extension that will double the size of the previous exhibition space. Providing a platform for an enhanced programme of exhibitions, the generously proportioned galleries will showcase established and emerging photographic talent from the UK and around the world. A new environmentallycontrolled floor will create opportunities to show more work from archives and museum collections and higher ceilings in the top floor galleries will provide
dynamic spaces for large-scale and moving image works.
A sculpted terrazzo entrance with an open plan design will connect the ground-level Café and lower-ground Bookshop to the street, creating a welcoming meeting place and lively hub for visitors. Extending over a further five floors, the original Victorian red-brick warehouse will be linked to a modern steel-framed extension through an external sleeve of black render, terrazzo and sustainably sourced Angelim Pedra wood. The architects have created numerous links between exterior and interior, punctuating the building with large feature windows which function as apertures onto the urban realm around Oxford St.
The new street level Café will be run in partnership with Lina Stores, the oldest family run delicatessen in Soho, and will boast an Italian menu of freshly-made dishes and baked goods.
A new visual identity for the Gallery has been created by North, one of the UK’s most respected and innovative design practices. Inspired in part by the building’s architectural design, this new visual identity will boldly communicate the Gallery’s vision both within the building and beyond.
Brett Rogers, Director of The Photographers’ Gallery, said: The new Photographers' Gallery will build upon its unique position as London's principal organisation dedicated to championing photography's role at the heart of visual culture. Whether on the gallery walls, through printed pages or new technologies, our programmes will provide a platform for current debates, new ideas and creative collaborations. Our building will create a vibrant social and intellectual hub in the heart of London's Soho for people of all levels of interest to enjoy the most democratic of all art forms.
Moira Sinclair, London Executive Director of Arts Council England, said: The Photographers’ Gallery is nationally and internationally significant, presenting and developing the very best contemporary art and artists and playing its part in our city’s reputation for great artistic experiences and visitor attractions. Our support for this project is an investment in the ambitions and aspirations of the Gallery; giving it more space to share the work of exciting new and established photographers and putting education, literally, at the heart of the Gallery’s work. Like many, I’m really looking forward to the reopening of this fabulous institution.
Architects Sheila O'Donnell and John Tuomey said: We look forward to seeing the
transformed Gallery unveiled from behind its scaffolding. We wanted The Photographers' Gallery to have an identifiable presence as a new public building in Soho, its silhouette visible through the gap on Oxford Street. Large windows are designed to frame views in to the gallery spaces and out to the London skyline. The black rendered elevations that wrap the new extension are cut away to reveal the colour and character of the original brick warehouse structure.
Source: photonet.org.uk